Connector/cabling best practices for a wide variety of control / power signals?

[strobot]

What are best practices for connecting a wide variety of power / control signals between a main control board and an instrument?

The control board has to read inputs from multiple sensors that include the following:

• I2C
• 0-30 mV differential
• 0-5V analog
• thermistors (5V voltage divider)
• TTL quadrature

and needs to "actuate" and provide outputs for:

• 5, 12, 24V power (<1A per device)
• multiple 12V PWM heater (<3A per heater)
• mulitple 12V PWM pump (<1A)
• 0-10 mA constant current (0-24V)
• multiple 0-5V analog (control signal)

Issues to consider:

• ease of cable assembly
• ease of instrument assembly
• ease of cable replacement
• ability to probe connections during testing
• current capacity for higher-power components
• connection reliability (locking / snap-in connectors over friction-fit)
• noise (having analog inputs side-by-side with switching, high current outputs)

Is using IDC ribbon cable with headers such as this and paralleling multiple conductors where higher current is needed OK?
Or should separate connectors with larger gauge wire be dedicated for driving higher powered components?
One large ribbon cable connector at the control board that breaks-out to the individual instrument components or independent cables and headers for each subcomponent in the instrument?

[Christopher]

Twisted pairs, keep analog and digital away from thick-gauge cable. You won't have any problems really..

Sleeve Power and Signals separately. Shielded Cat5 is good